Grading and separating machine



Junie 1943 H. v. GARCIA 4 2,321,742

GRADING AND SEPARATING MACHINE Filed Sept. 11, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 g Inventor A Home June 15, 1943. H. v. GARCIA GRADING AND SEPARA'IING MACHINE Filed Sept. 11, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor flag Via/" ja Paented June 15, 1943 2,321,742 GRADING AND SEPARATING MACHINE Henry V. Garcia, San Antonio, Tex, assignor to Southern Pecan shelling Company, San Antonio, Tex., a corporation of Texas Applicatien September 11, 1941, Serial No. 410,473

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a grading and sepa rating machine which is mainly designed for grading and separating nuts, either before or after the shells have been cracked, the general object of the invention being to provide means whereby the parts can be adjusted to grade objects of varying sizes or to separate the meat and shell fragments, when the nuts are cracked, in accordance with the thickness of the particles and irrespective of their lengths.

This invention also consists in certain other features of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts to be hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of the invention.

Figure 2 is a rear elevational view looking toward the left of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a front elevational view of the machine.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional through the machine.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the agitator member.

Figure 6 is a section on the line 66 of Figure 1.

In these views the frame of the machine is shown as composed of a high front end part I, a low rear end part 2 and the longitudinally extending channel members 3 which connect the end parts together with said members 3 sloping downwardly from the front of the machine to the rear thereof. A double hopper 4 extends across the front of the machine, the hopper being divided into two parts by the partition 5 and a cover member 6 extends from the hopper to the rear of the machine.

A pair of downwardly converging plates I is located in the frame and each plate is pivoted at its upper end adjacent a side member 3 as shown at B and these plates sloped downwardly and rearwardly and their lower faces engage the longitudinally extending rods 9 which have eccentric trunnions 1 ll at their ends which are journailed in the front and rear members I and 2, respectively. Arms II are connected to the trunnions at the front 'of the machine and carry the bolts I2 adjacent their outer ends which pass through arcuate slots [3 in the front member I so that by a person loosening the bolts the arms view can be moved to adjust the inclination of the plates 1 by turning of the rods 9 and then after the adjustments have been made the bolts are tightened to hold the parts in adjusted position. Each arm terminates at its free in a pointer and these pointers cooperate with the scales I4 on the front member adjacent the slots so that the adjustment can be readily made and very minute adjustments of the plates 7 are possible. The drawings show the plates I as provided with ribs or flanges 1 on their under faces through which the pivots 8 pass and the lower edges of which are engaged by the rods 9.

A longitudinally extending shaft I5 is journaled in the front and rear members and pass through the upper portion of the frame below the cover 6 and a V-shapedmember I6 has the shaft passing through its apex. A bellcrank I! is connected to the lower end of the shaft I 5 and a spring I8 connects one end of the bellcrank to a part of the frame. A shaft I9 is journaled in the rear part of the frame and an eccentric 20 on its inner end for engaging the other arm of the bellcrank, the shaft being driven in any suitable manner such as by a belt passing over a pulley 2| on the outer end of the shaft I9 and over a pulley of a power plant. Thus as the shaft I9 is rotated the eccentric engaging the bellcrank I! will rock the shaft I5 and thus impart a rocking movement to the member I6, the edges of which come close to the plates 1.

Thus it will be seen that the nuts or other material placed in the two parts of the hopper will gravitate into the two longitudinally extending spaces formed by the plates I and the wings of the member I5 and as the member I6 is rocked or vibrated it will agitate the particles so that they will move downwardly through the spaces formed by the parts I and the wings of the member I5. Of course, the smaller particles will pass through the spaces between the side edges of the member I6 and the adjacent parts of the plates l and these particles will roll down the lower portions of the plates '1 and drop into containers placed under the plates '1 to receive such particles. The larger particles which are too large to pass between the member I6 and the plates 7 will continue along these parts until they are discharged through the openings 23 formed in the rear member 2 and suitable receptacles can be placed adjacent this rear memher to receive such large particles.

Each plate I can be adjusted independently of theother plate so that the particles or objects passing down one space formed by one wing of the member [6 and a plate 1 can be graded for different sizes from the particles passing downwardly through the other space formed by the other wing of the member 16 and the other plate I.

When the device is used for grading nuts or nut fragments such nuts or nut fragments passing along the inclines will naturally lie upon the sides with the smaller particles passing through the openings between the member [5 and the plates so that grading and separating of the particles is accomplished in accordance with the thickness of the particles and independently of their lengths. Since the particles at no time during their passage through the machine encounter a rigid resistance, kernels in the mass will sustain a minimum of injury during the separating process.

It is thought from the foregoing description that the advantages and novel features of the invention will be readily apparent.

It is to be understood that changes may be made in the construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts provided that such changes fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. In a separating machine, a frame sloping from one end to the other end thereof, a pair of longitudinally extending downwardly converging plates pivotally supported in the frame at their upper edges, an invertedV-shaped member extending longitudinally in the machine between the plates with its edges spaced from the lower edges of the plates above the same, means for oscillating the V-shaped member to agitate the material being separated and means for adjusting the lower edges of the plates vertically toward and away from the edges of the V-shaped member to regulate the size of the openings between such edges of the V-shaped member and the adjacent parts of the plates.

2. In a separating machine, a frame sloping downwardly and rearwardly from its front end, an inverted V-shaped member extending longitudinally through the central part of the frame and mounted for oscillation therein, a pair of downwardly converging plates in the frame, one plate being located to one side of the V-shaped member and the other plate to the opposite side thereof with portions of the plates spaced from the lower edges of the V-shaped member below the same to form openings, means for pivotally connecting the upper edges of the plates to the frame, a rod passing under the lower portion of each plate and having eccentric trunnions at its ends journaled in the frame, an arm on the upper end of each journal for rocking the rod, means for holding the arm in adjusted position, a pair of scales on the front end of the frame and said arms being pointed at the free ends for forming markers for cooperating with the scales, and means to oscillate said member.

HENRY v. GARCIA. 

